Bones_ Recipes, History, and Lore - Jennifer McLagan [102]
Early man extracted the rich, nutritious marrow from such bones by smashing them with rocks. That left him with splintered bone pieces with very sharp edges, quickly recognized as useful weapons, and these bones became the first crude spears.
As civilization progressed, man replaced his bone tools with metal ones, but often kept bones as decorative items or features. Even today, many knives, especially hunting ones, have carved bone handles, and we can buy bone-handled cutlery for our dining tables.
Flemish-Style Rabbit
The beer in this recipe hints at its country of origin, Belgium. The prunes counteract any bitterness from the beer, while the bacon adds the necessary fat to keep the rabbit moist. The combination is delicious.
This is one of the first rabbit dishes I ever cooked for company and it is a good way to introduce timid guests to rabbit. Buy the slab (side) bacon, rather than sliced, so that you can dice it yourself. Rabbit doesn’t taste like chicken, it tastes like rabbit, but this recipe could be made with chicken pieces. (And you can, of course, use rabbit in your favorite chicken recipes.)
1 rabbit, cut into 6 or 7 pieces
3½ ounces (100 g) slab (side) bacon
12 shallots or small pickling onions
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
12 medium mushrooms, quartered
2 cups (500 ml) lager beer
1 cup (250 ml) Rabbit Stock (page 207) or Poultry Stock (page 130)
12 large pitted primes
2 large garlic cloves, unpeeled
5 flat-leaf parsley stems, plus 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 bay leaves
1 large thyme sprig
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon brandy
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1.Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Remove the rabbit from the refrigerator.
2.Cut off the bacon rind and discard, then cut the bacon into ¼ x ½-inch (5 mm x 1-cm) dice. Place in a small saucepan, cover with cold water, bring to a boil, and boil for 1 minute. Drain the bacon in a sieve and refresh under cold running water; set aside.
3.Refill the saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Drop in the shallots and cook for 1 minute. Drain in a sieve and refresh under cold running water, then peel, leaving enough of the root end intact so they will remain whole while cooking.
4.Pat the rabbit pieces dry and season them with salt and pepper. In a frying pan large enough to hold all the rabbit, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium heat. Add the rabbit and brown on both sides. Once the pieces are browned, transfer them to a Dutch oven or flameproof casserole.
5.Add the bacon and shallots to the frying pan, along with the remaining 1 tablespoon of the oil, and cook until the bacon is crispy and the shallots begin to color. Using a slotted spoon, transfer them to the pot. Add the mushrooms to the pan and cook until they color slightly, then add to the rabbit. Pour the beer and stock into the pan and bring to a boil, deglazing the pan by scraping up the browned bits from the bottom.
6.Pour over the rabbit, and add the prunes, garlic, parsley stems, bay leaves, and thyme. Bring to the boil on top of the stove, then cover the pot and cook in the oven for 1 hour. The rabbit should be very tender; if not, continue to cook it for another 10 to 15 minutes.
7.Transfer the rabbit to a warmed platter. Discard the herbs and, using a slotted spoon, add the shallots, mushrooms, and prunes to the rabbit. Keep them warm, loosely covered with aluminum foil. Remove the garlic cloves from the sauce and set aside.
8.Bring the sauce to a boil and boil hard to reduce it by half. Squeeze the contents of the garlic cloves into a small bowl, and stir in the sugar, brandy, and cornstarch. Whisk this mixture into the boiling liquid and cook for 2 minutes, whisking all the time.
9. Pour the sauce over the rabbit, prunes, and vegetables, sprinkle with the chopped parsley, and serve.
NOTE: The rabbit can be cooked ahead and reheated. Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C), and reheat the rabbit covered in the sauce